As Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) teases ditching the Democratic Party, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said he would be “welcomed” to join the Republican Party.
“Yes, we would welcome him,” Thune said on Tuesday, according to The Hill.
“I have had conversations with him in the past as have many of my colleagues about the challenges he faces in his caucus. And there are many of us who, I think, would welcome the opportunity to have him join the Republican conference but ultimately that’s a decision that’s up to him,” Thune continued, the outlet reported.
Last week, Fetterman said that increasingly negative sentiment toward Israel could be a pivot point for him politically.
“If they put that in our platform — no aid for Israel — and officially become the anti-Israel party, then yeah, that’s a red line for me,” Fetterman said Thursday, NBC News reported.
“Democrats, we’ve always should support Israel. That’s our special ally, you know? In the only democracy in the entire region, that’s Israel. So I’m always proud to stand with Israel,” the Pennsylvania Democrat added.
The Democrat also recently formed a joint fundraising committee with Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), as the two have formed a close alliance in the upper chamber, according to the Washington Post.
It’s unclear how serious the possibility of Fetterman leaving the party would be, and if it would result in a party flip rather than simply being an independent.
If Fetterman left the party, he would join the likes of former Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who both left the party during the Biden administration. However, they both continued to caucus with Democrats. Neither sought another term in Congress after leaving the party.